Julio Cesar Chavez Jr and

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Ruiz-Parker Final Presser Quick Quotes

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Photo of the day

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Jones-Gunn: Skill vs. Will

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Jones Jr. – Gunn Kickoff

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Latest Boxing News

WBO world champion Terence Crawford and WBC world champion Viktor Postol took part in photo shoot in Los Angeles today. Crawford faces Postol in a mega junior welterweight unification bout on Top Rank’s pay per card at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on July 23.

We move on from Fight Night Rotterdam to UFC 198, as the Unstoppable tour continues. Don’t miss UFC 198: Werdum vs Miocic for the heavyweight championship on May 14 on Pay-Per-View . . . Click here for more at UFC.com

Unbeaten Belgian top cruiserweight Ryad Merhy, 18-0(15), was scheduled to defend his WBC Intl silver title next May 21 in Charleroi, Belgium against Argentinian Cristian Javier Medina. Unfortunately the latter decided to accept to challenge Noel Gevor last Saturday in Hamburg and lost.

Promoter Alain Vanackere found a late replacement Williams Ocando from Venezuela but was ruled out as WBC Intl Silver challenger.

The off-TV action features a number of interesting fights, including the return of unbeaten heavyweight Andy Ruiz (26-0, 17 KOs), whose career has somewhat stalled as of late. Ruiz will take on 45-year-old former world title challenger Ray “The Rainman” Austin (29-6-4, 18 KOs) who is returning after a two-plus year layoff. The bout will be an eight-rounder.

Unbeaten 2012 Olympic middleweight bronze medalist Anthony Ogogo (8-0, 4 KOs) will make his long-awaited return to the ring on May 28 at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. Ogogo’s professional career has been stop-start so far due to injury. He will see his first action since July where he moved to 8-0 with a win in Germany over Ruslan Schelev. It was in that fight where he suffered a dislocated shoulder, fighting for the majority of the bout with just one arm. The fight in Germany was at the time also his return from a sustained period on the sidelines following Achilles problems. But the 27-year-old insists his injury woes are behind him and he’s ready to get his career back on track and make a huge impact in the middleweight division. (more…)

Tyron Zeuge (18-0, 10 KOs) will challenge Giovanni De Carolis (24-6, 12 KOs) for the WBA world super middleweight title on July 16 at the Max-Schmeling-Halle in Berlin. The 23-year-old, who is trained by WBA light heavyweight champion Juergen Braehmer, takes on the tough Italian, who claimed the WBA strap with an eleventh-round TKO win over Vincent Feigenbutz.

If successful, Zeuge will make history by becoming Germany’s youngest ever world champion, beating Graciano ‘Rocky’ Rocchigiani’s record of 24 years and 73 days by 8 days.

The biggest card the UFC has ever brought to Brazil touches down in Curitiba this Saturday, featuring a host of Brazilian superstars and capped off by a world heavyweight championship fight between Fabricio Werdum and Stipe Miocic. But to get things started for UFC FIGHT PASS subscribers at 6:15pm ET / 3:15pm PT, three intriguing bouts will see Brazil take on the world, while one pits welterweight countrymen against each other in a quartet of matchups that will get the Curitiba crowd up and cheering from the time the Octagon door shuts . . . Click here for more at UFC.com

IBF #3 Carlos Takam (33-2-1, 25 KOs) has arrived in Auckland, New Zealand for his IBF elimination bout showdown with IBF #4 Joseph Parker (18-0, 16 KOs) on May 21 at the Vodafone Events Centre, Manukau City. The winner will receive a world title opportunity against the winner of the Anthony Joshua vs. Dominic Breazeale clash on June 25 at the O2 Arena London.

The Cameroon-born and France-based Takam is coming off a eight round decision win over George Arias last November. The 35-year-old Takam’s only losses are to Gregory Tony in 2009 and Alexander Povetkin in 2014. Takam stands 6’3 and weighs 240 pounds

The New Zealand-born and Las Vegas-based Parker is coming off a eight round stoppage over Jason Bergman in January. The 24-year-old Parker has scored a stoppage victory over former champion Frans Botha. He stands 6’4 and also weighs 240 pounds.

The Fort Myers Miracle baseball team and the SJC Boxing Club staged another very successful Baseball and Boxing night at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers, Florida, on Saturday night. Unfortunately, The Miracle had an off night getting drubbed by the St. Lucie Mets 15-5. But the supportive crowd was excited to see several former boxing champions and contenders mingling with the fans, signing autographs and taking pictures.

Former heavyweight champ and Florida Boxing Hall of Famer Pinklon Thomas, future Florida Hall of Famer Glen Johnson, former middleweight title challenger Freeman Barr, who will be inducted into the Hall of Fame in June, and Florida Hall of Fame announcer Bob Alexander along with several others visited with fans throughout the game. (more…)

Tuesday morning at New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, Promoter Dmitriy Salita and several fighters from his upcoming “Detroit Brawl” event volunteered their time to assist the Forgotten Harvest organization with passing out food to deserving families. The group consisted of Salita, main event participant Demetrius Banks, co-main event fighter James Gordon Smith, James Ballard and Darrell Van Horn.

During Tuesday’s Crawford-Postol kick-off presser, WBC super lightweight world champion Victor Postol presented a larger than life commemorative stamp of himself to his opponent WBO jr weterweight champion Terence “Bud” Crawford. The stamp not only featured Postol’s image but also foreshadowed the result of their upcoming fight, with a caption that included Postol’s record after their fight, complete with projected record and unified titles.

After viewing the artwork, Crawford told Team Postol, “There’s only one place for junk mail and that’s the shredder. I’m going to cancel your stamp and your reign as WBC champion on July 23. The new face of boxing isn’t on that stamp, it’s in front of you.”

Crawford’s trainer Brian “BoMac” Mcintyre then drew an X over Postol’s face with a Sharpie.

Terence Crawford: On paper everybody says this is gonna be a 50/50 fight. But in my eyes, I’m looking at going in there and destroying this man right here. I know I don’t say too much to the public because I’m always focused on the task at hand, but when I say this is different for me, this IS different for me. I’m looking forward to putting on a great performance, my first pay-per-view, and I’m looking forward to many more to come. After July 23, my record will be 29-0 with 21 knockouts.

Viktor Postol: I’m sure that I’ll unify the WBC and WBO belt on the 23 of July…it will be a spectacular fight.

Hall of Fame promoter Frank Warren has issued a statement on making a potential unification clash between WBO lightweight world champion Terry Flanagan (30-0, 12 KOs) and WBA lightweight king Anthony Crolla (31-4-3, 13 KOs). “In simple terms, no barriers, no excuses, let’s get it done! The ball is now firmly in Team Crolla’s court. Flanagan is ready and I’m ready and our door is open,” stated Warren.

Quite simply, Flanagan v Crolla has to happen. when has there even been an opportunity to see two world champions from the same city, in fact the same school, attempt to unify their World titles?

Far too often, politics get in the way of making great events, now so more than ever before. During my 35 year career, I have co-promoted countless of events with major promoters in the UK and around the world, including Matchroom so I see no reason why this cannot happen again. (more…)

Four young, undefeated cruiserweights from the United States will look to make a name for themselves when they meet in the featured bouts on ShoBox this Friday from Sam’s Town Live in Las Vegas. The cruiserweight division has traditionally been dominated by Europeans boxers. Friday’s U.S.-born ShoBox fighters will be seeking to change that perception. In the main event, Andrew “The Beast” Tabiti (12-0, 11 KOs) takes on Keith “Machine Gun” Tapia (17-0, 11 KOs), while 2012 U.S. Olympian, Michael Hunter (11-0, 8 KOs) faces Isiah Thomas (15-0, 6 KOs) in the co-feature. (more…)

Former WBO junior welterweight world champion, “The Siberian Rocky”, Ruslan Provodnikov is deep in training in Indio, Calif. with his trainer Joel Diaz for his June 11 Showtime clash against John Molina Jr. at The Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, NY.

“Knowing exactly the date and the opponent makes me unstoppable and mentally confident in training,”Provodnikov said. “This fight will start a new page in my career. I want to show the people that have already written me off the books what I can do in the ring. I will be ready for another war on June 11. I am very happy with the way training camp is going. Joel Diaz is a great trainer and is helping me correct some of the bad habits that I had in previous fights.”

Provodnikov-Molina Jr. will headline a tripleheader that will also feature a WBC super welterweight elimination bout between Demetrius Andrade and Willie Nelson, plus a battle for the vacant WBC lightweight world championship that will pit No. 1 Dejan Zlaticanin against No. 2 Emiliano Marsili

Undefeated junior welterweight champions Terence “Bud” Crawford and “The Iceman” Viktor Postol will collide in a 12-round world title unification fight, to determine the lineal king of the exciting 140-pound division on Saturday, July 23, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. It will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View.

Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Tecate and the motion picture “Hands of Stone,” tickets to Crawford vs. Postol, priced at $304, $204, $104, and $54, not including applicable service fees, are on sale now. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call AXS at (888) 929-7849. Tickets will also be available for purchase at mgmgrand.com or AXS.com.

The Illinois State Athletic Commission completed a Continuing Education/Medical Training Seminar on Saturday, April 30th at Garfield Park in Chicago. More than 50 judges, referees, and commission inspectors from both boxing and mixed martial arts attended. Also in attendance were instructors Celestino Ruiz, boxing referee, from Chicago, IL, Mike Fitzgerald, boxing judge from Janesville, WI, and Illinois Commission Doctor, Nicholas Rizzo from Chicago, IL. According to one attendee, the seminar was a success with much positive feedback. The seminar was informative and the instructors were knowledgeable and engaging. The Commission looks forward to making this an annual event.

Philadelphia is known for having a rich boxing history. Philly fighters, whether they are champions or not, are known as some of the most memorable warriors to ever lace on the gloves. So it is understandable that the City is buzzing lately, as a new crop of promising boxers embark on their professional careers.

The group includes Jaron Ennis, Joshua Jones, Christian Carto and a few others. All of them have either recently debuted or are on the brink of taking that first step toward their dream of becoming a professional world champion.

Leading the pack of these new young Philly lions is Germantown’s Darmani Rock, a heavyweight who has won almost every trophy, medal and honor available to a young amateur fighter. So for Darmani, it is time to move on to the next level.

“As an amateur, you can’t eat no medals,” Rock said “You can’t feed your family off no medals. It feels good to be pro now and getting paid for it.” (more…)

Cruiserweight Ovill “The Upsetter” McKenzie (25-12-1, 13 KOs) will challenge Dmytro Kucher (23-1-1, 17 KOs) for the Vacant European title at London’s famed York Hall on June 10th. It’s a big return for McKenzie, who just missed out on claiming a world title when he pushed IBF ruler Victor Emilio Ramirez to a controversial draw in Argentina last October.

“I’m delighted that Queensberry Promotions won the purse bid today and that I’ll be fighting for the prized European title for the first,” stated McKenzie. “This a fantastic fight to return back into after the disappointment in Argentina when I should have been crowned world champion. However, that’s in the past and now I want that beautiful European belt around my waist and then look at the world title again. Kucher looks dangerous, but he doesn’t have the experience I have and that will be crucial in this fight.”

Though WBO junior flyweight champ Naoya Inoue is nicknamed “Monster”, his 20-year-old brother Takuma Inoue (7-0, 2 KOs), 114.75, is also going to follow his footstep as he very impressively retained his OPBF 115-pound belt by disposing of Indonesian national titlist Afrizal Tamboresi (12-5, 6 KOs), 114.25, at 1:40 of the second session on the undercard of his elder brother’s defense on Sunday in Tokyo, Japan.

Takuma, who had won the belt of the OPBF (Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation) in his fifth pro bout as early as Naoya, displayed his improvement in quickly flooring the more experienced opponent with solid combinations and decking him again with strong rights to prompt the referee’s intervention. (more…)

World champion Terence Crawford and his team hits LA for Top Rank’s big press conference on Tuesday. Terence and world champion Viktor Postol will discuss their July 23 world junior welterweight unification title bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, live on HBO pay per view.

The shorter southpaw Kano made a good start and took the initiative, whipping the highly regarded Filipino veteran, fourteen years his senior at 32. He also opened a gash over the left eyebrow of Sabillo, ex-WBO world titlist, in the fourth, after which the open scoring system indicated Kano leading on points: 40-36 twice and 39-37. (more…)

Former WBC super-feather champ, WBC#1 Japanese southpaw Takashi Miura (30-3-2, 23 KOs), 133, needed just 161 seconds into the initial round to dispatch Filipino Jimmy Borbon (5-2-2, 3 KOs), 132.5, with a single left leather on Saturday in Tokyo, Japan. Having been dethroned by Francisco Vargas in a grueling battle in Las Vegas last November, Miura participated in his first since and made short work of the overmatched Filipino opponent by displaying his awesome power with which he had badly decked Vargas midway in his previous bout. His rematch with Vargas is highly anticipated by our fight fans. (more…)

With more than 90% of the vote in, boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao looks like he’ll be successful in his bid to become a senator in his native Philippines. “Pacman” is currently running eighth in a race where the top twelve vote-getters will be elected. Manny will serve a six year term.

World champion Viktor Postol of Kiev, Ukraine arrives in LA for a Top Rank press conference which will include Postol and world champion Terence Crawford. On July 23 Crawford and Postol will battle in a world Jr welterweight unification title fight at the MGM Grand Arena, Las Vegas, live on HBO pay per view.

The WBA Championships Committee has called for a May 19 purse bid for WBA interim heavyweight champion Luis Ortiz (25-0, 22 KOs) against Alexander Ustinov (33-1, 24 KOs) after the parties failed to reach an agreement during the free negotiations time frame. The bout will be part of the WBA’s ambitious heavyweight tournament announced last January in order to crown a single heavyweight champion.

I was fortunate to be close to so many moments in the recent history of boxing when some of the BIG FIGHTS were in the process of becoming a reality.

There are specific elements that are needed to see a matchup become a world event, to become “The Super Bowl of Boxing.” One is the championship experience of both fighters, Champion vs Champion will always draw tremendous attention. An undefeated record, to have that 0 at stake is always thrilling. Nationalities and rivalries between countries. Pound for pound listings, amateur accomplishments, city and arena and some others simply make fans dream of the result while analyzing such factors and elements.

Perhaps the greatest fight ever was Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier. Ali coming back to boxing undefeated after spending three years out of the sport with a movement that rocked the sports world. Frazier the reigning world champion. Madison Square Garden, the heavyweight title at stake …. Frank Sinatra had to obtain a photographer credential to get ringside, all the celebrities were present and the fight was a thriller which led to two other epic battles. My father was not WBC President then, but was there as the WBC supervisor and he would remember that night for the rest of his life as the greatest night in boxing history. (more…)

On Friday, June 24, at the 18,000-seat Beijing Capital Gym in Beijing, China, unbeaten WBA super featherweight champion Javier “El Abejon” Fortuna (29-0-1, 21 KOs) will make the second defense of his belt against WBA #8 contender Jason Sosa (18-1-4, 14 KOs). The potential war between the two sluggers will be also be seen by an audience of nearly 100 million Chinese via cctv5 channel live broadcast.

Fortuna vs. Sosa was officially announced at a press conference in Beijing today as the first in an ongoing series of four high-profile events per year that will be put on by the co-promotional partnership of Min Du Modoson and Liu Gang of Max Power Promotions “MPP” and Sampson Lewkowicz of Sampson Boxing.

On Tuesday morning, promoter Dmitriy Salita will continue his mission to mix the revival of Detroit boxing with a strong social conscience. From 9-12 am, Salita and several fighters from his upcoming “Detroit Brawl” event, will help the Forgotten Harvest organization pass out food to deserving families at New Bethel Baptist Church, located at 8430 C L Franklin Drive (aka Linwood St) in Detroit.

The group of local fighters joining Salita includes main event participant Demetrius Banks, co-main event fighter James Gordon Smith, as well as James Ballard and Darrell Van Horn. (more…)

Alistair Overeem put a stamp on his return home to the Netherlands on Sunday with a fierce TKO finish to put away Andrei Arlovski as he takes one more step towards a world title shot . . . Click here for more at UFC.com